This page is a compendium of items of interest - news stories, scurrilous rumors, links, academic papers, damnable prevarications, rants and amusing anecdotes - about LAUSD and/or public education that didn't - or haven't yet - made it into the "real" 4LAKids blog and weekly e-newsletter at http://www.4LAKids.blogspot.com . 4LAKidsNews will be updated at arbitrary random intervals.

Thursday, December 24, 2015

LAUSD MUSICIANS STRIKE UP THE ALL DISTRICT HONOR BAND IN PREPARATION FOR THE ROSE PARADE

Cheerleaders and musicians rehearse for their performance in the 127th Tournament of Roses Parade.

Dec 23, 2015 |:: Undaunted by the chilly drizzle that damped their clothes – but not
their spirits – the lines of musicians in L.A. Unified’s All District
Honor Marching Band moved in lockstep across the vast parking lots of
Dodger Stadium.

With just a few rehearsals left before their Jan. 1 performance in
the Tournament of Roses Parade, the 360 students knew they had to get
everything just right. After all, the annual event draws some 1
million spectators along the Pasadena parade route, and 85 million more
who will watch on televisions around the world.
Click here to watch a video of the band’s rehearsal.
This will be the 44th consecutive
year that the Honor Band has performed in the Rose Parade. For the last
30 years, it has been directed by Beyond the Bell coordinator Tony
White and Art Duardo, the now-retired principal of El Sereno Middle
School and a stalwart volunteer for the group.

“You are the best of the LAUSD,” White told the musicians. “Remember, you bring honor to the Honor Band.”

The All District Honor Marching Band is undaunted by the cold drizzle.

After auditioning in the fall, the students have been giving up their
Saturdays to practice the music and memorize the choreography. Now,
marching up and down the asphalt hills of Chavez Ravine, they are
training for the 5-1/2-mile trek down Pasadena’s Colorado Boulevard. The
L.A. Unified group will be one of 20 marching bands in the parade and
56th in the lineup on 92 entries.
The kids will also perform during Bandfest,
which features the Rose Parade ensembles performing their field shows.
The L.A. Unified band will perform during the session that starts at 2
p.m. Dec. 30 at Pasadena City College Stadium, 1570 E. Colorado Blvd.
Tickets are $15, free for children under 5.

During a break in this week’s rehearsal, the kids got a pep talk from school board President Steve Zimmer.

“You play a very important role in making sure that you are
delivering, and that this parade delivers, an inspiration to kids who
may be having some trouble, to kids who may be experiencing some pain,”
he told them.